K-State jazz professor, students to tour South America

Media Relations and Marketing
9 Anderson Hall
Manhattan, KS 66506-0117
Phone: 785-532-6415
Fax: 785-532-6418

Information provided by K-State Media Relations, K-State's news service, may be reproduced without permission. The marks and names of Kansas State University are protected trademarks and may not be used in any commercial or private endeavor without the approval of the university.

Source: Wayne Goins, 785-532-3822, weg@k-state.edu
http://www.mediarelations.k-state.edu/WEB/News/MediaGuide/goinswayne.html
Note to editors: Phil Ward is a graduate of Mulvane High School; and Matt Leifer is a graduate of Topeka High School.
News release prepared by: Adam Holste, 785-532-6415, media@k-state.edu

Friday, February 23, 2007

K-STATE JAZZ PROFESSOR, STUDENTS TO TOUR SOUTH AMERICA

MANHATTAN -- Wayne Goins and five hand-picked jazz students from Kansas State University will tour South America for three weeks this summer.

Goins, K-State's director of jazz and assistant director of bands, will accompany the student jazz combo, named the KSU Jazz Ambassadors, on the four-country trip beginning July 3 and ending July 26. They will first stop in Brazil at Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo before heading to Buenos Aires, Argentina; Asuncion, Paraguay; and Montevideo, Uruguay. The group plans on performing at several U.S. embassies and universities in the South American countries.

"I think the trip is so important to students because they get to represent the department of music and the university on a global scale, and it's a chance to put K-State on the map, musically speaking," Goins said. "Furthermore, it is a rare opportunity to give students a chance to see a part of the world that has international significance with regard to relations to the U.S. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and we are all really excited about it."

Student musicians selected include Kelly McCarty, senior in applied music- composition, Emporia, bass; Matt Leifer, junior in music, drums, and Phil Ward, graduate student in music, trumpet, both of Manhattan; Richard Smith, senior in music education, Satanta, guitar; and Grant Buell, fifth-year senior in architectural engineering, Blue Springs, Mo., piano. Goins will be featured on guitar for the combo.

"These students are the cream of the crop in the jazz program here," Goins said. "They've been with the program for the most number of years and they are veterans of jazz. They're my go-to guys."

The five students will be taking two courses in early summer in preparation for the trip. Goins will teach an overview on the music of Latin America. Bradley Shaw, associate professor of modern languages at K-State, will teach language, politics and other various cultural aspects of the societies in South America. Shaw, who is also the director of the international and area studies program at K-State, will be going with the group to serve as the tour guide and translator.

Goins said working with him on the trip were M. Duane Nellis, K-State provost; Ken Holland, associate provost for international programs; and Jennifer Smith, travel coordinator, office of international programs. Funding came from the office of the provost, Stephen White, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, the Wayne & Reginald Goins Scholarship Fund at the Kansas State University Foundation, and individual student funds. Larry Rodgers, associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, served as the budget coordinator and helped the group plan the finances.